A lawyer for an OnlyFans model who fatally stabbed her boyfriend at their Miami condo earlier this month said Monday that she acted in self-defense, a claim made days after the victim’s family said there was “no cause to believe” that he posed a threat.
The lawyer, Frank Prieto, confirmed comments first made to CBS Miami that he was confident there would be no charges against Courtney Clenney in the April 3 killing of Christian Toby Obumseli.
The Miami Police Department said last week that it is investigating a domestic violence incident that left Obumseli dead. The couple had been involved in a physical altercation that ended with a stabbing, the department said in a statement.
Obumseli was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
The department did not respond to a request for comment Monday.
Prieto said that the couple’s two-year relationship was “complicated” and “clearly toxic.” The April 3 stabbing came one week after Clenney, who is in her mid-20s, kicked Obumseli out of her apartment over allegations of abuse, he said.
A lawyer for Obumseli’s family did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
During a news conference Friday, Obumseli's cousin, Karen Egbuna, said the family has "no cause to believe that this was a case of self-defense. Toby was raised by a very strong family, with strong morals, strong values. He does not come from that."
Egbuna described him as caring, kind and one of the most soft-spoken people in their family. His brother, Jeffrey Obumseli, added that he was captain of his high school football team and a star athlete.
"There’s many unanswered questions and we just want justice for our brother," he said, NBC Miami reported.
Prieto said that Clenney, who appeared on the OnlyFans website under the name Courtney Tailor, was hospitalized after the incident for emergency mental health services.
She was released less than two days later to her family on a doctor's recommendation, he said.